Twelfth Night

Tonight is twelfth night. As we take down all the greenery and glitz of Christmas, I thought this would be a good time to show some pictures of the beautiful table centres and wreaths which people made at my Christmas workshops. The table centres (like the one above) we made this year were woodland-inspired. We started with a humble wooden chopping board. 

Then this was covered in moss. Here is the set up at the golf club workshop and some of the participants attaching their moss. 

Then we added lots of different materials to the moss. For example:

Once the base was complete, we added a small arrangement of red roses and seasonal foliage. Like this.

Here are a few more completed table centres. They were interesting, quirky and attractive and I hope they drew a lot of admiration during the holidays.

I ran a similar workshop at my house. If you were wondering how the arrangement of fresh flowers accessed a water supply, this picture shows you how. We made a small container from a plastic cup which we covered in moss and attached to the base.

A final touch being added. For this arrangement we included pretty red anemones as well as roses.

Here is another completed table centre.

At this workshop we also took some small wooden discs.

These were decorated to match the main arrangement and the idea was to use them as individual place settings. They worked really well – a definite hit!

I ran my wreath workshop again this year. Here are the stages for making a truly splendid wreath which can be hung inside or outside. First, take a wire wreath base and handfuls of straw. Then use reel wire to attach the straw to the base.

Next, make small bunches of spruce.

Then make an equal number of bunches using holly, ivy and spruce.

Next use the reel wire to attach the bunches to the foliage base.

Next comes the design stage. This is where you decide what to attach to the foliage. The materials you choose need to be wired like this.

Then the wires can be pushed into the base to hold the materials securely.

Here is the fabulous result. What amazing workshop participants.

This is my wreath hung on an internal door. It is a gorgeous, sumptuous wreath and I will be very sorry to take it down this evening.

I made a lot of arrangements in vases and jam jars for customers, friends and family. In this one I added a bit of blue to the traditional red, white and green. I thought this added a freshness that I liked.

Then for these jam jar arrangements made with English flowers from Cornwall, I added some yellow (soleil d’or narcissi) as well as blue. The result was bright and joyful. On this up-beat note I would like to wish you all a very Happy New Year and thank you for all your custom, enthusiasm and support during 2015.